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People have been collecting stuff for centuries. That stuff can range from everyday items, like pottery and glass, to commemorative issues, like stamps, to monetary assets, like gold, silver and coins, and more. The possibilities are endless, and if you revere a particular item, chances are someone else does, too. In today's internet savvy world, it's easy to find other like-minded folks who are willing to barter, trade, sell, and buy, often with reckless abandon. The joy is in the hunt... and the thirst to amass a collection worthy of acclaim can last years.

Jane Withers, the famous child star of the 1930's and 1940's, was a planganologist, or a doll collector. In 2004, Jane sold her entire collection at auction. What a collector's dream, to own a doll that belonged to the child who gave Walt Disney the line, "It's a small world, after all!"

People who collect autographs are called philographists. One example is Praful Thakkar, who has been collecting for over 50 years and boasts a collection of over 6,000 autographs! He even maintains an online gallery.

It is rumored that coin collecting became popular in medieval times, where coins were hoarded for both artistic and historical value. Those first coin collectors became what are known today as numismatists.

Philatelists collect stamps, and it is estimated that over 22 million people in the U.S. today enjoy this hobby! England's King George V had one of the most famous, and possibly the largest, stamp collection in the world. That collection, further developed by his ancestors, is entitled The Royal Philatelic Collection.

Rock collectors are termed petrologists, and may further divide their collections into specific kinds of rocks. They include igneous, meaning granite or volcanic rock, sedimentary, like sandstone or shale, and metamorphic, like slate or marble. People who specialize in sedimentary rock collections, may also be avid collectors of fossils.

Vladimir Nabokov, a multi-lingual Russian-American novelist and short story writer, was also a famed lepidopterist, or butterfly collector. Nabokov wrote Lolitawhile traveling on one of his annual butterfly collection trips in the western United States.

Although entomologyis considered to be the study of insects, collectors are also referred to as entomologists. Many colleges today offer entomology courses, which are widely popular. One famous collector was prominent scientist, Charles Darwin.

Clock collectors are called horophiles, and antique collectors are, at times, called antiquists. You'll even discover collectors of beer related incidentals, like labels, (a labologist), and beermats, or coasters, (a tegestologist).

What do you collect? How did your infatuation begin? What is your greatest, or funniest, find? Frequently the stories behind the collection are as enthralling as the collection itself!

3 comments:

Love your post! Didn't know there were so many different names for different collectors out there! Me, I just collect random stuff! No real mystery, just things that pop out at me!!! Perhaps that could be called "randomology"! hehe!

About Me

Welcome to my blog! My name is Cindy, and I love selling online. Fleapirates Plunder is my Antiques and Collectibles store at OnlineAuction.com, where I've had a happy home since 2008. (Before that I was an eBay fanatic!)
This blog showcases many of the "happenings" at OLA, but also diverges into other areas that interest Online Sellers from all venues... topics like SEO and Social Networking are some of my favorites.
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